Mennonite Church USA delegates passed the resolution this summer at their churchwide convention in Kansas City. (Mennonite Church USA is the denomination from which Dove’s Nest grew out of in 2009.) We believe that a document like this is a significant first step in addressing the need for abuse prevention in church settings.

As a representative of Dove’s Nest, I was invited by the New York Office of Children & Family Services (OCFS) to help them relate to the growing population of Amish and Old Order Mennonites in their state.

While two-thirds of the Amish live in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Indiana, they are also rapidly growing in Michigan, New York, Wisconsin, Missouri, and Kentucky. In fact, the Amish are growing faster than nearly any other subgroup in the U.S., with a population of 300,000 currently and some projecting that number reaching 1 million by 2050.

When I share with people about my new role with Dove’s Nest, I hear everything from, “I thought child protection policies were required for all churches”—from someone in Pennsylvania, a state with new laws for all volunteers working with children—to “I didn’t know abuse happened in churches.”

A thorough background screening process is a critical component of any set of Safe Church practices.

The experts are unanimous on this point: social workers, lawyers, liability specialists, law enforcement, and child safety professionals all commend background screening procedures to churches and other organizations whose workers—paid and/or volunteer—interact with minors. Good practice includes contacting personal references, verifying employment history (especially when considering candidates for a paid position), and conducting a criminal records check. This last item is the focus of this article.

The weather this spring and summer has been brutal on my garden, and I don’t like it.

While Nebraska weather is often unpredictable, I can usually count on spring being a little bit wet and summer being dry and hot. This year spring was record-breaking wet and summer stayed cool for much longer than usual until temps suddenly soared into the 90s and beyond.

I have a container garden, since I don’t have space in my backyard for a traditional garden. I also have sundry flowers and flower beds spread throughout our yard. This year, my plants have required more care and attention than usual. I have found myself taking measures to protect them from flooding rains, fungal plagues, squirrels, birds, and blazing 100-plus degree sunlight. In each situation, my response was different depending on the plant and the dilemma.